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Getty/David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe
Center for American Progress
5 Interesting Ways Governors Are Spending CARES Act GEER Funds on Higher Education
By Bradley D. Custer
October 26, 2020
Tucked into March’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security
(CARES) Act was $3 billion for governors to spend on educational
institutions hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, as Congress
remains mired in debates over whether to award additional stimulus,
recently released reports paint a clearer picture of what states are
doing with their shares of the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief
(GEER) Fund. While most of this aid is going to K-12 school districts,
some states have put forth equity- and sustainability-focused higher
education spending priorities. For example, Michigan created a free
community college program for essential workers, and South Carolina
dedicated its entire higher education allocation to its eight
historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). Should Congress
grant more relief aid, states should use some of these strategies as
models for helping the most vulnerable students and institutions.
GEER Fund initial report findings
This column examines the short reports submitted by states this summer
to the U.S. Department of Education. These initial, 45-day reports,
posted publicly in September, describe at a high level each state’s
plans for using their GEER funding.
Notably, 17 states and Washington, D.C., spent little to no money on
higher education, opting instead to spend all of it on school districts
and services for K-12 students. Among the remaining 33 states, GEER
funding dedicated to higher education was most commonly distributed to
institutions, either through a direct allocation or through competitive
grants. Institutions might spend that money on emergency aid to
students, covering safe reopening costs as well as lost revenue,
technology, and professional development for faculty and staff. In some
states, funds went to university systems or state agencies to fund
centralized programs, such as financial aid programs.
Because governors were given flexibility on how to spend their GEER
funding, several proposals stand out for being unique or innovative.
Some exemplify an equity-minded strategy by focusing on the
historically undersupported students and institutions that need the
most help now, including Black students, adult students, HBCUs, and
community colleges. Others are using the funds to ensure sustainability
of institutions and student success beyond the immediate crisis.
Michigan creates its Futures for Frontliners program
In September, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) launched the Futures
for Frontliners program, funded by the state’s entire $24 million
higher education portion of GEER funding. As the first of its kind in
the country, this short-term scholarship program is for people who do
not already have a degree and who worked as essential workers between
April and June 2020. Eligible students will receive tuition-free
in-district community college courses toward any certificate or degree
program. In its first two weeks, a remarkable 60,000 students applied
for the program—a strong indication that adult workers in Michigan may
be out of the jobs they held earlier in the year and in need of new
career training.
South Carolina backs its HBCUs
South Carolina is the only state to dedicate the full $2.4 million in
GEER funding it set aside for higher education to its HBCUs. As Black
college students and HBCUs face some of the worst effects of the
pandemic, this investment shows a commitment to racial equity in higher
education. The aid was slated to be awarded across the state’s eight
public and private HBCUs—until the effort was upended in late July by a
lawsuit.
Gov. Henry McMaster (R) used the rest of the $32 million in GEER
funding to create a controversial K-12 school choice program, giving
money directly to parents to send low-income students to private
schools. This use of public funds for private educational institutions
was immediately challenged as a violation of the state’s constitution,
and the South Carolina Supreme Court agreed. Though the HBCU funding
was not initially implicated in the lawsuit, the governor still
suspended its allocation while the case was under review. Now, the
ruling may entirely upset the governor’s spending plans on higher
education, because six of the state’s HBCUs are private institutions.
Massachusetts protects vulnerable colleges
Massachusetts may be the only state to use some of its GEER funding to
help struggling public and private colleges on the brink of closure.
The initial report indicates grants will be given to colleges at risk
of insolvency or closure following an “independent assessment of the
institution’s finances.” According to an official in the Massachusetts
Department of Higher Education whom CAP reached for comment, $1 million
will be reserved to pay for financial assessments of institutions, and
about $5 million will be reserved for future emergency spending,
including grants to vulnerable colleges.
This strategy illustrates the tough choices states have to make with
their limited relief aid. Across the country, at least nine small
private colleges have decided to close since the pandemic began, and
more closures are expected, including in New England. Another three
colleges have announced mergers with other institutions, including
Massachusetts’ Pine Manor College and Boston College. Grants from the
GEER Fund could keep some Massachusetts colleges afloat through the
worst effects of the pandemic.
Texas plans to invest in student success
In both its application for funding and initial report, Texas provided
unusual detail on its plans to spend $307 million on schools and
colleges. Much of the $175 million for higher education went to
students through existing state financial aid programs, emergency
student aid, and aid for “upskilling and reskilling displaced workers.”
Most interesting is Texas’ $15 million investment in technology
designed to improve student success rates. This type of technology uses
a student’s academic data to give real-time feedback to the student and
their academic advisers about the student’s progress to graduation. In
addition, Texas plans to spend some of this money on new training
resources for career advisers and other technologies. The investment in
these enhancements could yield benefits to all students now and well
beyond the pandemic.
Kansas, New Jersey, and Washington state go all in on higher education
Finally, three states stand out for awarding their entire GEER Fund
allocations to higher education institutions. Each used slightly
different strategies. New Jersey awarded its more than $68 million
directly to its public universities and community colleges through a
formula. Washington state prioritized community colleges with its $54
million in GEER funding. The state’s 34 community and technical
colleges received $44 million in aid, leaving $10 million for the six
public universities. The exact funds each community college received
were based on factors that included accounting for enrollment declines
and preserving support for students of color. This approach recognizes
the outsize role that historically undersupported community colleges
will play in educating students during the pandemic.
Kansas, on the other hand, took the opposite approach. The entire $26
million fund was awarded to the Kansas Board of Regents—the state’s
governing body overseeing its state universities and institutions—which
disbursed the money among the state’s six public universities,
including separate allocations going to its medical center and
veterinary medical center. Curiously, the 19 community colleges and six
technical colleges, also coordinated by the Board of Regents, received
no emergency relief funds, which is a missed opportunity to support
two-year colleges.
Looking ahead
The GEER Fund was the last pot of money from the CARES Act that will
help to carry college students and institutions through the fall
semester. However, states need more federal relief aid for higher
education now and beyond—as much as $120 billion, according to one
estimate. Without it, one can expect consequences with long-lasting
effects, including declines in enrollment, especially among students of
color and low-income students; faculty and staff layoffs; reduced
student services; and even college closures.
Not only is more aid needed, but the investments must be targeted at
the most vulnerable students and institutions, thereby preventing
unjustifiable allocations to wealthy universities and for-profit
colleges. As Congress debates subsequent relief packages, the
initiatives highlighted in this column may be models for other states
seeking to use short-term emergency funding to improve equity outcomes
or sustain institutions and student success through the pandemic.
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